Russia's ambassador to the UK: We must carry on trading

Ukraine is weighing heavily on the political dialogue and there are
attempts to hamper our commitment to economic co-operation. This is not the
right approach. Russian and British companies should continue to talk to each
other and trade, helping to create jobs and develop larger markets and
relationships with partners in other countries.

Politics should not
dictate to business. That is why the Russian government takes a very careful
approach in its response to the sanctions that have been imposed on it with
unseemly haste. We do not want the situation to get out of hand because of
short-term political tactics, for that would have long-term adverse effects for
the economies of many countries. It can be a very dangerous precedent in our
globalised world, where issues of development, rather than those of
geopolitics, are paramount.

This is not to say that
our governments do not play any role in this area of our ties, preferring a
laissez-faire approach. On the contrary, in recent years the bilateral
Intergovernmental Steering Committee on Trade and Investment has proved to be
useful in easing some of the tensions arising from time to time because of
regulatory or other imbalances and barriers.

Other useful official
bilateral channels include the Energy Dialogue, the Liaison Group on Moscow as
an International Financial Centre and the Joint Commission on Science and
Innovation. These bodies cover some of the key areas of our bilateral
co-operation – energy, including nuclear, finance and high technology. Despite
the clear advantages that these formats can bring to interested companies, the
British Government has taken a back seat in terms of driving the agenda
forward. But what is at stake?

For now, our trade volume
numbers seem to be keeping up – in the first three months of 2014 turnover
stayed broadly flat compared to last year on the $5.5bn (£3.25bn) mark, with
our exports to the UK growing some 5pc. In 2013 the UK remained the second most
active foreign investor in terms of capital inflows ($18.9bn) and fifth in accumulated
capital ($28bn).

We remain committed to
fostering active commercial links between our companies and their partners from
Britain and other countries, whether in large or small projects. Leading
companies such as BP and Shell, Mace and JCB, AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline,
EY and PwC are now household names in Russia, while the City of London
continues to provide Russian companies and entrepreneurs with additional
support in terms of financial and legal services. Similarly, among some of the
larger Russian companies present in the UK are Gazprom, Lukoil, VTB Capital,
Alfa Group, Sberbank and Volga-Dnepr. They represent not just billions of
pounds in turnover, but thousands of jobs both here and in Russia.

In difficult times like
these, independent bilateral channels, free from political interference, have a
special role to play: to keep calm and carry on. The Russo-British Chamber of
Commerce is a good example. It remains determinedly apolitical in its
activities, and that is exactly what its members need – a body that provides
good advice while keeping a cool head. The annual RBCC Business Forum, to be
held in London on June 4, will be a good platform to openly discuss the hopes
and worries that the companies have, and to look into possible new opportunities
and projects.

Alexander Yakovenko is Russian Ambassador
to the United Kingdom. He was previously Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.